Injured whilst in custody

When handling persons in custody, public authorities are under the obligations set by the Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA). This means that there is a limitation on the level of force that these authorities such as the police can use against any persons; should force be required, this should not exceed the level 'necessary’ to enforce the law, for example, to prevent an unlawful situation, defend the public and protect life, or make an arrest, etc. In the event of an agent of public authority making an offence, the victim must report the incident. Section 65 of the Police Act 1996 ensures that should an investigation arise from the report, it will be handled separately from that of a criminal investigation.

 

How we can help

If you receive an injury whilst in custody then it is strongly suggested that you commission either a solicitor (not the duty solicitor, they and the Police share the same paymaster and are probably on friendly terms with the officers that caused the injury, they will almost certainly be on first name terms with each other, hence they do not want to cause their friends any undue concern). Our solicitors are totally independent, they do not share the same paymaster and would not know the officers, hence the standard of representation will be significantly higher.

 

Our first action would be to get you medically assessed by one of our excellent medical consultants to ascertain the extent of the injuries. Police may well try to deny, or at least defer such an action to give bruises, cuts etc time to heal, hence leaving no trace of injury. If they do try this then ask for a mobile phone so that you can at least take some pictures of the injuries. To gain our assistance you need to open a case, this is done by taking advantage of our free consultation service, activated by the link at the top of the page, should you wish to start a case the caseworker will send you the suitable payment link.

 

Please note your caseworker can only give generic advice, their role is to prepare your details for handling by our legal and medical team and to act as your point of contact, they will also issue you with your Password and PIN, these will be needed to log onto your client dashboard. From your dashboard you will be able to manage and view every aspect of your case, upload documents, images, files etc.